Luffy As Hostage
by christinalgerstner
Summary: Luffy gets kidnapped by Edward Weeble. But just when Luffy was about to be in the hands of Blackbeard, Shanks shows up. Sabo hears about the kidnapping and shows up on Shanks ship.
1. A Bad Feeling

**I was completely inspired by what happened in Dressrosa. Also I really want Luffy to meet Shanks who meets Sabo for the first time! I PROMISE I will finish this story all the way to the end.**

 **MAJOR SPOILER - DO NOT READ UNLESS YOU ARE CHAPTER 802+ CAUGHT UP ON THE MANGA.**

 **Disclaimer: I am not the owner od One Piece & I will never be the owner. P.S. I don't own One Piece period.**

* * *

"The sea sure is long," Luffy said gaping at the view of the blue waters that stretched for miles. He was sitting on the lions head at the front of the Sunny. He had his hands resting in his lap and was leaning back against the figure head. It was peaceful to stare at the sea with his head held back like this doing absolutely nothing unless. . .

"LUFFY! THERE'S AN ISLAND UP AHEAD! WHERE SHOULD WE DOCK THE—"

"TAKE OFF THOSE STUPID EARMUFF'S AND STOP YELLING IN MY EAR," Luffy screamed as Usopp flinched backward almost falling off the side of the ship. Shocked at Luffy's quick response, he struggled to take off his earmuffs. The weather in the New World was ridiculous. One day, it's scorching hot, the next it's freezing cold. Every now and then, snow or hail would come pouring down from the sky. The crew try to avoid the impact of the large chunks of hail but with Nami's help, they were able to get around it.

"I said 'There's an island up ahead—", Usopp repeated again.

"I heard you the first time," Luffy interrupted.

"Okay, then where do you want us to dock the—"

"Somewhere close to town if there is one," Luffy interrupted again.

"OI! QUIT DOING THAT!" Usopp yelled.

"Doing what?"

"YOU KNOW _WHAT_! QUIT INTERRUPTING ME!"

"No."

"Excuse Me?!"

"You heard me, No."

". . ." Usopp wasn't surprised. He knew his captain wasn't the type to listen.

"Besides, you yelled at me first," Luffy said looking away with his mouth puckered to the side.

"That's no excuse."

"At least I don't lie."

"What does that have to do with us yelling?"

"I'm not yelling."

"You were just a minute ago," Usopp was starting to annoyed and a little impatient.

"You yelled at me first," Luffy repeated.

"WOULD YOU TWO SHITHEADS SHUT UP! GET IN HERE AND EAT ALREADY!" Sanji screamed as he pointed to the kitchen. Luffy and Usopp looked up at Sanji, then at each other. They were relieved & kinda grateful that Sanji showed up to stop their little feud. They both ran up the stairs and into the kitchen to eat the mouth watering food that Sanji always makes.

* * *

"Fo Wami, fow pong rill et bake fu ket fu wah vex (gulp) island?" Luffy asked Nami while chewing on a piece of meat.

{So Nami, how long will it take to get to the next island?}

"First off, don't talk with your mouth full. *sigh* Let's see, the island we're headed to is called Nokowelps Island. It's known to be the only island with the tallest trees in the New World." Nami replied.

"Hmmm, . . . what about the next island?" Luffy asked.

"We haven't even docked at this island yet, why are you so interested in the next one?" Nami asked raising an eye at Luffy. She was starting to get curious about her captain's appeals. She was always fascinated with the idea of how Luffy's mind worked.

Luffy thought about an answer for a while, "Hmmmm, . . . I have a feeling that something will happen on this island."

Suddenly, everyone diverted their attention from their food to Luffy. Sure, sometimes Luffy can be a bit of a reckless idiot when it comes to his role as a captain. Even so, there are times when he gets serious. Luffy's always the one who causes the most trouble where ever they go. But, if _he's_ the one who points it out, sure enough they all knew he's is almost never wrong.

"What do you suppose might happen then, Luffy?" it was Robin who asked.

Luffy turned his head in the direction of Nokowelps island. "Don't know, I have a bad feeling about it though."

"We should probably stick close to each other then," Sanji suggested taking the cigarette from his mouth.

"In that case, we'll go in groups of 3—," Nami said.

"~Robin-chawn~Nami-swan~You can go with me if you'd like~," Sanji merrily said with his arms flailing about and hearts in his eyes.

Ignoring Sanji's sudden interruption, Nami continued, "Like I said, it'll be groups of 3. The first group will be Luffy, Usopp, & Chopper. The second will be Brook, Sanji, & Zoro. The third will be Robin, Franky, & myself. If Luffy is right about what he said, then it'll be easier if there was a devil fruit user in each group. If something bad does happen then, head back to the Sunny ASAP."

"We can use these red flares I made not too long ago," Usopp suggested raising his hand.

"Perfect, we'll use that to signal everyone back to the ship." Nami said.

"Speaking of red . . . Nami-san" Brook said trailing off.

"Yes? What is it, Brook?" Nami asked.

"What color are your panti—", Brook said before getting punched in the face by an enraged Nami.

"Not telling!" Nami said before giving out a heavy sigh, "now then, is there anything that I missed captain?" Nami asked turning to Luffy.

Luffy looked up at Nami and smiled that dumb idiot smile he always puts on. "Shishishi...Yep", he turned toward his crew who were waiting for him to speak, "Stay safe and don't get separated."

And with that, the crew finished their meals and split ways to get ready for their adventure on Nokowelps island. Other than supplies and food, they needed to be ready for anything. They knew the New World would be tough and they had two years to prepare for it. They were ready for the worst. Usopp gave each group a flare gun and 2 red flares, in case they lost the first one.

Standing in front if the Sunny, Luffy made his final announcement before the groups departed on the island, "Listen up everyone. Like I said before, stay safe and stick together, you never know what might happen. Sanji's group will get the food and supplies. Nami's group will recon for info. And my group will go exploring. Shishishishi."

They all sighed at the last thing Luffy said. If there's one thing they knew about their captain, it was that he loved to explore and have fun. Even though all he does is cause more trouble for them.


	2. Expedition on Nokowelps Island

**I'm sooo super sorry this update came late. I had so much homework to do that I had no time to write this, but here** **'s the next chapter. Thanks so much for the reviews from the last chapter, they helped me make some corrections to the first chapter. Anyways, please enjoy this one & let me know what you think so far. Also, please keep in mind that there will be more chapters coming later, so stay in touch for them!**

* * *

"Hey Momma, do you really think that Mugi-wara guy from the war two years ago is on this island?" Weeble asked out of curiosity.

"Yes my dear, he's here. I'm most positive that he's here. Well, that is, unless he figured out that we were hunting him. Hehehe, I highly doubt it, considering how much of an airhead he is. All the newspapers I've read had lead me to believe that Nokowelps island is the next island that his crew will most likely land on." Miss Bakkin remarked.

"Do you know him momma?"

"No, but I did plenty of research about him. I know his past, personality, and his connections. And, Weeble dear?" Miss Bakkin asked expecting a reply.

"Yes, momma?"

"Mugi-wara is said to be very strong and skilled. He's a devil fruit user who ate the gomu-gomu no mi. It made him into a rubber man. Also, he's now able to use haki and Dark King Rayleigh was the one who taught it to him during the two years of his disappearance. Keep in mind that he is not a pushover and will not go down without a fight." she said pointing her cane at Weeble making sure that he understood.

She thought for a moment about how strong Mugi-wara might be, looked down and smirked. She looked up at Weeble again with a devilish smile plastered on her face. "Oh but, I have no doubt that he is no match for you my son. I'm sure that you will win against him in a fight."

"Don't worry momma. I will make that Mugi-wara guy talk and make him tell us where Marco is. You can count on me", Weeble said while standing up straight with one hand on his hip and the other holding a weapon similar to his father's.

Miss Bakkin had been fiddling with her cane for the past hour. Her and her son arrived at the island a few days ago. The two have literally been sitting around doing nothing but wait for the Strawhat pirates to finally land on the island. Actually Miss Bakkin was the one who was sitting on her butt. Weeble however, was swinging his weapon around back and forth in different directions throughout the air.

They were camping out on the sandy beaches of the island making sure they don't get too close to the trees. Those trees had a nasty rumor about them, but Miss Bakkin didn't really care that much though, so long as Weeble doesn't go wandering off into them, of course.

Weeble was all raring to go and was very excited about his upcoming fight with Mugi-wara. He knew that since he was a fighter, his momma had to be the brains. He wasn't really good at thinking anyways and whenever he tried, it would always hurt his brain.

Miss Bakkin was starting to lose her patience with Mugi-wara's late arrival. _Maybe he did run away after all. The scared coward was sooo going to get it. Actually, what am I thinking? Mugi-wara has no way of knowing that we are waiting for him. Guess I'll just have to wait a little longer._

She had the perfect plan set in mind. Her and Weeble arrive at the island before the Strawhat pirates and wait for them to arrive themselves. They would stake out a little while and Miss Bakkin would play the role of an old lady asking for help, even though she already is one, and attempt to lure him to the beach. She would have to make sure that he will be alone. And once they are at the beach, Weeble will ambush him and beat him up until he tells us the location of Marco. At that point, he would be useless.

 _Hehehe, maybe I should let Weeble kill Mugi-wara when we are done with him. Hehehe, that brat won't know what hit him._ Miss Bakkin thought before closing her eyes and snored herself to sleep. She was going to need every once of her strength to convince Mugi-wara to come with her for her so-called help, a.k.a. her brilliant plan.

* * *

 **(Sanji's group)**

"Alright, the first thing we need will be...", Sanji said while looking over at the long list of supplies that his crew will need over the course of their next voyage.

"I'm goin fishing, see ya", Zoro said and turned to leave Sanji and Brook to their shopping.

"THE HELL YOU ARE, STUPID MARIMO!", a red hot kick immediately landed on the top of Zoro's head, almost making him fall over to the side.

"OI, WATCH IT, SHITTY COOK!" Zoro took out two swords and slashed them at Sanji. Sanji jumped in the air using his moon walk move.

"LUFFY SPECIFICALLY SAID NOT TO SEPARATE!"

"HE ALSO SAID TO STAY SAFE! I WOULD DO THAT BUT YOU'LL ONLY GET IN MY WAY!"

Sanji landed on the ground a feet away from Zoro. "Look, I don't care if you wanna go fishing or not. Your stuck with me and Brook until we get back to the ship, Got it?"

Zoro clicked his tongue, "Che~what a pain. Fine, but, I'm only going with you because it was the captain's orders."

"Glad you finally understood, stupid marimo." Sanji said while taking out a new smoke and putting it in his mouth.

"WHAT WAS THAT?"

"YOU HEARD ME, I'M NOT REPEATING MYSELF!"

"I'LL CUT YOU IN HALF!"

"I'LL KICK YOU TO PIECES!"

While Sanji and Zoro were fighting, Brook was standing around watching them go off on each other repeatedly. _Yohohoho. I wonder if I should get involved, but I don't want to disturb their daily fight._ Brook silently thought to himself. He looked at the ground and saw a piece of paper near the spot where Sanji first jumped in the air. Brook walked over and picked it up. _Oh, this is the list of supplies that Sanji-san had earlier. I should probably give it back to him._

Brook walked over to where Zoro and Sanji were fighting still. "Umm, sorry to bother you Zoro-san, Sanji-san, but I found your list of–"

They both stopped to look at him before yelling in perfect sync, "STAY OUT OF THIS, BROOK!"

Brook nearly freaked out at the sight of two monsters ravaging at each other's throats, "Uh, sure! Sorry to disturb you!"

* * *

 **(Nami's group)**

"You know, it might benefit us if we go to a bar", Robin suggested.

"Maybe, we could just ask around town about it", Nami said.

"I'm with Robin on this, the best place to get information about anything is a bar", Franky commented.

"Alright then, a bar it is", Nami announced.

"One more thing. I need some supplies from a hardware shop. Usopp and I are working on a SUPER awesome weapon for the Sunny", Franky said.

"Fine, but only if we have time for it", Nami replied.

They walked around town for a while before going to a bar called Takeeles Bar. Nami thought the name was a bit misleading. Apparently, the bar was owned by the two oldest couple on the island. Nami, Robin, & Franky entered the bar and sat separately, hoping to gather more information that way.

* * *

 **(Luffy's group)**

"WOOHOO! ADVENTURE!", Luffy shouted at the top of his lungs while jumping in the air with his arms spread out. "Hurry up you two! Don't get left behind!"

"Luffy! Wait up! Stop running around everywhere like a maniac!" Usopp yelled at Luffy. "*sighs* What's the point? Luffy never listens."

Chopper ran from Usopp's side to catch up to Luffy, "Luffy! Wait for me! I'm coming with you!"

"YOU TOO!" Usopp slapped the back of his hand in the air.

"I swear these devil fruit users." Usopp said and ran to catch up to the reindeer and his overexcited, trouble-making captain.

* * *

 **(Sanji's group)**

"OI, shitty cook. Give me back my swords." Zoro said trying to be as polite as he can and resisting the urge to literally murder Sanji.

Sanji took out his smoke and replied with the same tone as Zoro, "No".

"Why you! I swear one of these days, I'm going to tear you apart."

"Good luck with that while your tied up", Sanji smirked.

"AND WHO'S FAULT WOULD THAT BE, HUH? OI, ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME YOU SHITTY COOK?" Zoro yelled.

Sanji yelled back, "YOURS BECAUSE YOU KEEP WANDERING OFF ON YOUR OWN!"

Sanji and Zoro kept bickering at each other leaving Brook to stand at a distance and watch while they battle it out.

 _Oh dear, they've gone and done it again. I wonder how many times today Sanji-san and Zoro-san have fought._ Brook thought to himself.

Brook called out to them, "Umm, Zoro-san, Sanji-san. If I may-"

Sanji and Zoro both looked at him and shouted in perfect sync, "HUH? WHAT DO WANT? CAN'T YOU SEE WE'RE BUSY HERE?"

"Uhh yes, I do but shouldn't we be heading back to Sunny-san?" Brook replied being as polite as he always is.

Sanji back away from Zoro a bit and said, "Yeah, your right. We have all the food and supplies we need after all. No point in sticking around here anymore. ~And I'll get to see Nami-swan and Robin-chawn again~."

Sanji ran on ahead hoping to get to see Nami and Robin first. "~Nami-swan, Robin-chawn, Wait for me~!"

Brook watched Sanji disappear in the direction of the Sunny until he was completely out of sight. He turned to Zoro and said, "Zoro-san, I shall untie you from those ropes when we return to Sunny-san."

Zoro sighed, "Fine, I don't really care anymore. Anyways, thanks for putting up with us for today Brook."

They started walking back to the ship together, "Oh, not at all. I'm sort of used to it now. I mean, you two always fight, so it's practically normal for me to experience it everyday."

"Yeah, I guess." Zoro smirked.

* * *

 **(Luffy's group)**

Trees, trees, and more trees. Everywhere they walked there were trees. And they all looked the same. Usopp had gotten the feeling that they were walking in circles. Every now and then, Usopp would ask Luffy to climb up a tree all the way to the top and check out where they were. But when Luffy came down, all he said was that it all looked the same and that they should continue their adventure. Usopp sighed many times already at the carelessness of his dumb captain.

"I swear, I think we are lost. Luffy, let's turn back now." Usopp said concerned.

"Don't worry Usopp, we'll be fine. Things always work themselves out in the end." Luffy said while smiling. He held both his hands behind his head. He was careful not to accidentally knock his hat over his head.

"Yeah Usopp, you need to lighten up a bit." Chopper said with a smile equally similar to Luffy's.

"YOU BOTH ARE IDIOTS!" Usopp shouted.

"Shishishishi, well whatever. *turns around* Back to adventuring!", Luffy said already running off into the deep forest of trees.

"Jeez, just how careless can that guy get?" Usopp questioned, talking to no one in particular.

"You know how he is Usopp. Anyways, I feel a little weird around these tall trees." Chopper commented. He wrapped his arms around himself, shivering only slightly.

Usopp turned to Chopper for a moment and then toward the trees. He opened his hand around his chin, "You know what, you're right. For awhile now, I've been getting a weird feeling about these trees. It doesn't feel like anyone's watching us though, so..."

Chopper turned away and looked around. Now frantic, Chopper turned to Usopp out of worry, "Usopp, Luffy's nowhere to be seen! He must of ran off while we were talking!"

Usopp looked down at Chopper and looked around to see if he was right about Luffy missing. "Oh no, this is bad. This is really bad."

Usopp immediately went into his bag, struggling to find the flare gun and red flare among all the other things in it. He quickly put the red flare in the flare gun, pointed his arm at the sky and shot it. The sound of the flare gun was loud enough for Chopper to cover his ears. The red flare shot straight up through the tall trees, leaving a trail of red smoke behind it as it went up.

* * *

 **(Nami's group)**

"Well, that was certainly educational", Robin said smiling.

Franky was crying as he exited the bar, "That poor old man *sniffles* had it tough and *sniffles* and had a manly life. All these years *sniffles* alone without any luck of *sniffles* finding his wife. I feel * sniffles* so sorry for him." Franky was crying a waterfall feeling deeply touched by the old man's words.

"AHH, SHUT IT ALREADY, WILL YOU." Nami said. "Look, that old man said that he was searching for his wife for 30 years already. Even if we help him out and find her, it would take forever for us to do so. And besides, she'd probably be dead by now. Also, it's not our problem since we're already busy with something else.

"Sorry to interrupt you Nami, but look", Robin said pointing at the sky.

Both Franky and Nami looked at the direction that Robin is pointing at. They saw red smoke in the far distance. It looked like it came from the tall trees. The three of them instantly knew that something must have happened to Luffy and the others.

"We should head back to the Sunny and quickly", Robin said.

"Yeah, let's get going", Nami said, the three of them already running in the direction of the Sunny.


	3. The Presence of a Brother

**Thanks for the reviews. I hope you guys are liking this story so far. I feel like I sidetracked from the main story for a bit in this chapter. But whatever, I like Ace's and Luffy's relationship as brothers. And that's what this chapter is about this time. Enjoy!**

* * *

"YOU BOTH ARE IDIOTS!" Usopp shouted.

"Shishishishi, well whatever. *turns around* Back to adventuring!" Luffy said already running off into the deep forest of trees.

"Jeez, just how careless can that guy get?" Usopp questioned, talking to no one in particular.

~A short while later~

"Usopp! Luffy's missing!" Chopper said shaking his arms around in worry.

Usopp looked around,"Oh no, this is bad!"

* * *

It took a while for Luffy to realize that he was alone, especially since he no longer heard Usopp's voice. He wondered why it was strange that he didn't hear that constant nagging. Luffy tried to remember the last thing Usopp said.

Aww, yes, he called Luffy an idiot. Not that Luffy cared anyways. After all, he really is an idiot and probably the biggest one there is.

Luffy looked around to see if he could trace his way back to Usopp and Chopper. Everywhere he looked was the same. The same trees, the same ground, the same everything. What's the point? Every time he turns to go one way, he would end up even further away from where he started.

Luffy threw his hands up in the air. "Guhhhh! I give up! There's no way I'm going to find the others like this!"

Suddenly he felt the presence of another person nearby. He used haki to try to locate the person. Luffy turned in the direction of the mysterious person.

It was weird. Luffy first thought that it was either Usopp or Chopper. But, this person seemed a little different. Using his haki again, Luffy figured that this person was strong. Like really, really strong.

"Oi! Who are you?" Luffy asked.

No answer.

"I said, 'Who are you?'" Luffy repeated. He was starting to get mad.

Still no answer.

"OiI! CAN U EVEN HEAR ME?" Luffy asked.

Luffy could hear the person shifting from behind a tree. He started to move towards the tree where the person was. Finally approaching the tree, Luffy placed his hand on it. But just as he did that, the person behind the tree had vanished.

Luffy quickly ran around the tree but found no one there. _What the? Where'd he go? I could've sworn there was someone here._ Luffy thought to himself.

Without warning, Luffy felt the presence of another person. No, this was the same presence from before. It was the same person. But this time, the person was behind a tree where Luffy was when he first noticed the mysterious person. Luffy looked over at the spot where he stood before feeling the person's presence. He blinked. _That tree is in the exact same spot where I was standing before. But, that's impossible. Trees can't move. Can it? A walking tree? Is it edible? Great, now I'm hungry._

Luffy walked around the tree he was currently at and leaned against it with his arms crossed and waited. He wasn't going to fall for the same trick again and since the person didn't seem to want to talk to him, he'll just stay silent and wait for the person to come out himself.

The person made no movement for a while. It was quiet and Luffy was starting to get sleepy. _Just how long will this person take? I'm tired of waiting._ He thought before yawning for who knows how many times already. Sleep was now already taking over Luffy's body. Without making any sounds, he felt his back sliding down the tree falling asleep in the process.

The person from behind the tree turned around and walked quietly towards the sleeping Luffy. He crouched down so that he was eye level with Luffy and lifted his hand at Luffy's face. He pushed his hand up even further to brush off some of Luffy's hair away from his face. The person smiled gently at his cute little brother sleeping ever so carelessly.

He bent his head over Luffy's ear. He spoke softly in his ear, "I miss you, Luffy. I'm really sorry I couldn't keep our promise. I regret leaving you at such a harsh time two years ago. But, I'm sure you've gotten stronger since then. I will forever be with you in your heart. Please stay alive for me, Luffy. You're my most precious little brother and I'm always so worried about you. But, so long as you carry my will, I know you'll be just fine. I'll be leaving you in Sabo's care, so behave and stay safe."

The person hesitated for a moment to check that Luffy didn't wake up and told Luffy four more words, "Luffy, I love you".

Luffy immediately opened his eyes and jumped forward. He looked around.

"That's weird. I could've sworn I heard Ace just now. Was it my imagination?" Luffy said still checking around the area in hopes of seeing Ace.

Then he remembered the war from two years ago and Ace dieing in his arms. Thinking about it made him want to cry. Luffy bit his lip trying to hold back the tears that were already swelling up his eyes.

There were so many things he had wanted to tell Ace. Things about his crew. Things like all his adventures. He wanted to show Ace how strong he had become in the past two years. He wanted to tell him that he and Tra-guy formed an alliance and planned to take out Kaido. That he pissed off Big Mom and that they were going to battle it out someday for the claim of Fishman island.

But even more than all that, there was one thing he wanted Ace to know ever since he found out himself in Dressrosa.

Luffy stood up and began walking down a random path that led to who knows where. He spoke softly while looking up through the trees at the sky, "Ace, guess what? Sabo is alive."

* * *

 **I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I thought it was really touching. Like I said before, I know this may seem a bit sidetracked, but this works out with the rest of the story. Please stay in touch for the next chapter.**


	4. An Unexpected Meeting in the Forest

**So, I noticed that there was some confusion about whether Ace was alive in this story or not. The answer is no, he is not alive. I'm trying to include characters that are still alive from the manga. This story is basically a prediction as to what might happen in One Piece. But anyways, this chapter took me foreverrrr, I put so much thought into how I was going to write it. So without further or due, enjoy!**

* * *

 **(Everyone except Luffy back at the Sunny)**

"Alright. Everyone listen up!" Nami announced getting everyone's attention in an instant. Nami looked around to make sure she had everyone's undivided attention. She felt the crew's eyes returning her gaze as they all knew the dire situation they were put in.

Of course that is, if everyone knew that, then it wouldn't be much of a problem. That being said, the whole ship was quiet except for one loud snoring green haired man who was on the floor leaning against the mast. Everyone's gaze turned away from Nami to Zoro. Getting irritated with Zoro's behavior, Nami calmly walked over to him, her Clima Tact already in one hand. Everyone's eyes switched from Zoro back to Nami. They all knew what was coming.

Standing over Zoro, Nami raised her weapon and quickly swung it down on Zoro's head. "WAKE UP! WHO SAID YOU WERE ALLOWED TO SLEEP?"

Zoro woke up the moment the weapon touched his head. His eyes looked like they were popping out of his skull as he felt the blow. Zoro propped himself up while rubbing the top of his head,"Ow, that hurt you know."

"I DON'T CARE IF THAT HURT OR NOT. HOW COULD YOU SLEEP IN A SITUATION LIKE THIS?" Nami screamed at Zoro frustrated with his carelessness.

"*fake cough* Loser", Sanji said holding a fist to his mouth. He looked over at Zoro to make sure that the stupid marimo had heard him.

Turning to Sanji, Zoro stood up and pulled out his swords, "WHAT WAS THAT, CURLY EYEBROWS?"

Nami slapped her hand at the back of Zoro's head causing him to rub it again, "That's enough you two." She looked up towards everyone else who were patiently waiting to hear the news of their situation. "Anyways, let's get started."

Nami turned to Usopp, "Usopp, just to be clear, you the one who shot up the red flare. Am I right?"

Usopp nodded, "Yeah, it was me."

Nami folded her arms, "So then, tell us what happened."

"Alright, let's see..."

 **(Flashback)**

"Usopp, Luffy's missing!" Chopper said waving his arms frantically out of worry.

"Oh no, this is bad! This is really bad!" Usopp said equally as worried as Chopper.

"Usopp, what are we are gonna do?! Luffy's the one who said we weren't supposed to separate! What if Luffy gets lost?! What if Luffy is hurt?! What are we going to tell the others?! What if we get lost?! What then?!" Chopper was pacing back and forth not knowing when he should calm down.

Usopp lifted his head to his forehead, "Oh man, if Nami finds out that we lost Luffy, she'll have our heads big time." He paused to notice Chopper pacing around everywhere while going on and on about "What if Luffy this?" and "What if Luffy that?". Usopp walked over to Chopper, kneeled down and patted his head while smiling, "Don't worry. I'm sure that once we get out of this forest of look-a-like trees and get back to the ship, everyone will help us find Luffy. *he paused* And besides, our captain isn't that weak. If he runs into trouble, I'm sure he'll be able to take care of it in no time."

Chopper wiped away his tears and smiled back at Usopp, "Yeah, your right! No one can beat our captain! Especially, not after two years of training."

Suddenly, the two felt a strange presence watching them nearby. Chopper stepped away from Usopp and raised his arms ready for a fight. Usopp had his Kuro Kabuto ready at hand. He used his haki to try to locate the person and to determine his or her strength. He had Luffy help him improve his haki after he discovered it on Dressrosa when he took down Sugar.

But before Usopp had attempted to use his haki, the person walked out from behind a tree. It was a short old lady with a bob haircut. She was wearing a small hat and had glasses on. She had a black cane an a wore a leopard printed coat on.

Usopp thought to himself. _Who is that? What's an old lady doin in a forest like this?_

The old lady spoke first, "You two shouldn't be wandering in this place. You'll easily get lost."

Usopp answered first, "Well, we were with someone else, but we seemed to have lost him. Do you by any chance know a way out of this forest?"

"That depends on you", she answered back careful not to say too much.

"On us? What do you mean?" Chopper asked confused and a little lost in the situation.

"I mean, tell me your names. Do that and I might tell you how to get out of here", The old lady said.

Usopp thought about telling her their names but hesitated a moment. The Strawhat crew were famously well known around the world. And after what happened on Dressrosa, they've become even more well known. Not to mention, their new bounties. _I can't be fooled by her. She seems smart and careful with her choice of words. One wrong move and we'll be in trouble._

Usopp spoke again, "Fine, but you have to tell us your name as well."

"Very well, my name is Miss Bakkin."

 _Miss Bakkin? Don't think I ever heard that name before._ Usopp thought before replying to the old lady, "Never heard of you before. My name is Usopp and this here is Chopper." He made a gesture with his hand showing the woman that the reindeer was Chopper.

"God Usopp. Sniper of the Strawhat crew. And, Chopper. A cotton-candy loving reindeer, the pet of the Strawhat crew. You two are quite famous."

"I'M NOT A PET! I'M A DOCTOR!" Chopper yelled frustrated with people calling him a pet.

"Doctor? You sure don't look like one." Miss Bakkin said.

"WELL, BELIEVE IT OR NOT, I AM A DOCTOR!" Chopper yelled again.

"Anyways, we told you our names. Now tell us a way to get out of here", Usopp said.

"Fine, follow me. If your going back to your crew, it's this way", Miss Bakkin said pointing her cane in a random direction. She began walking toward that direction.

Usopp and Chopper looked at each other and rushed over to keep up with Miss Bakkin.

"By the way, how did you find us anyway?" Chopper asked.

"I was waiting for someone on the beach. I got fed up with waiting and I fell asleep and the next you know, I was sleep-walking in this forest." Miss Bakkin replied.

"Do you sleep-walk a lot?" Chopper asked curious.

"What are you? My interrogator?" Miss Bakkin demanded.

Chopper waved his arms attempting to clear up a misunderstanding that was placed, "No. No. I was just curious."

"Whatever. All you need to know is that I came here with my son and that I am waiting for someone to show up. That's all." She said.

"Who are you waiting for?" Usopp asked hoping to sneak out more information about the person that was leading him out of the forest.

"A high bounty pirate", she replied.

"Really? How big is his bounty?" Usopp asked raising an eye.

"Again with the interrogating questions. I'm also a pirate you know. I won't answer any more questions that you have." Miss Bakkin said swinging her cane at Usopp who dodged it in time thanks to haki.

After that, the three of them had stayed quiet. Every now and then, Usopp and Chopper would exchange glances at each other for only a single moment before returning their attention to the old lady they were following.

 _Of all the things I could've done. I just had to fall asleep and let myself get taken into this stupid forest. Normally, Weeble would stop me from sleep-walking off and wake me up. But, nooo. He just had to let me go into these trees. What was he doing anyway? Messing around again? I swear, I will make sure to punish him when I see him again. When I saw that red flare, I thought it was Weeble. And when I went to where it was shot, who did I find? Not Weeble, but two useless beings who just so happened to be a part of the Strawhat Pirates. Wait. Strawhat pirates? When did they arrive at the island? And if these two are here, then that means that Mugi-wara is here as well. *evil smirk* Maybe I could get them to lead me to their captain._

Miss Bakkin broke the silence and asked, "If you two don't mind, I'd like to meet your captain. Mugi-wara Luffy was his name?"

"We're headed back to our ship because we need help from the others to find him." Chopper answered not realizing the true intent of that question.

"So he was the one you mentioned that got lost in this forest?" Miss Bakkin asked.

Usopp broke into the conversation before Chopper could say another word, "Why are suddenly interested in our captain?"

"Oh, it's nothing. Just that your captain is a high bounty pirate himself." she replied.

It wasn't too long that the 3 of them were out of the forest and on the outskirts of the town nearby. Miss Bakkin bid her farewells to Usopp and Chopper and turned to leave back into the forest.

"Wait! I thought you wanted to meet our captain." Chopper said.

"You said he was lost." she said not looking back.

"But if you help us along with everyone else, then I'm sure you'll get to meet him soon." Chopper insisted.

"It's not my interest to help other pirates. I'm just going to head back to the beach to find my son." She said, already walking back in the forest.

"Let's go Chopper. We need to head back to the ship." Usopp said.

"Yeah, you're right", Chopper replied. The two of them turned away from the forest and began walking towards their ship back to their crew.

 **(End Flashback)**

The crew listened to every word Usopp said and for once, he didn't make up some lie of a story that was impossible to believe. They were all thinking the same thing. That this situation was suspicious. Very suspicious.

"If I were to guess. I'd say that Miss Bakkin and her son are after Luffy." Robin suggested holding a few fingers to her chin.

"I thought the same thing. It didn't make sense to me that she would suddenly want to meet Luffy. But when she heard that he was missing in the forest, she went right back in there. She said was going back to the beach on the other side of the forest, but I get the feeling that she'll probably go look for Luffy instead and try to get to him before us." Usopp said.

"Luffy did say that he had a bad feeling about this island. I'm not surprised that Luffy went suddenly missing because he does that to us all the time. What I am surprised about is how fast it all happened and that old lady...Hmmmmm... It definitely seems that she's after our captain. But why?" Nami said.

"Probably to capture him." Franky suggested.

"Underestimating our captain's abilities?" Zoro asked Franky.

"Dude, it's just a suggestion." Franky said.

"In any case, we need to find Luffy-san before the old woman does." Brook said jumping into the conversation voluntarily.

"Hold it right there! There's still my end of the report." Nami said holding up her hand at those who were already leaving to find Luffy.

"But if we don't go now-", Chopper exclaimed.

"I know! I know! But before any of you go, there's something you need to know about those trees in that forest." Nami said interrupting Chopper.

Everyone except Nami, Robin, & Franky all stopped in their tracks for a moment. They all turned back to face Nami, awaiting another report of another mystery that was yet to be revealed.

Nami didn't begin until she once again had everyone's full on attention. She looked around to make sure that everyone was listening this time. Especially Zoro and anyone else who might be sneaking a quick nap. Let's just say, she's pretty strict with things like this and if your not listening, well, you know.

"Nami-san, you have everyone's attention. Please continue." Brook politely said.

"Thank you Brook. Alright. As you all know, me, Robin, & Franky all went to town to seek out any leaking information about this island. Now let's see...It started when we entered this weird bar.-" Nami began.

* * *

 **(Meanwhile, back in the forest...)**

 _Those useless Strawhats! Getting my hopes up for just a split second! Jeez, they even made me believe that getting Mugi-wara would be easy. Now here I am, looking for him in this stupid same-tree forest. Guess I'll be going back to my original plan._ Miss Bakkin thought to herself. Even though she was alone, she didn't feel comfortable speaking aloud, so she kept everything that she considered a secret, in her thoughts.

 _I feel like I've been walking forever. Well, it's not like I'm getting any younger. I'm pretty sure Mugi-wara is running around like those dumb numskull idiot pirates like that Red Hair Shanks. Speaking of which, I wonder if that's who Mugi-wara got that hat of his._ She thought.

 _"_ *heavy sigh* That's it! I'm going back to the beach! I'm sure that by now, Mugi-wara is already there fighting Weeble. Hehehe, he should be losing. He's no match for my son." She said aloud before turning in another direction that led to the beach.


	5. Tree Mystery & A Woman Named Maylene

**I'm sooooooooo sorry for the long wait. I don't usually take this long to write a chapter. But anyways, I'll give you guys a brief summary of this chapter-**

 **Usopp just finished telling the rest of the crew about how he & Chopper had separated from Luffy and how they met a suspicious pirate. The crew starts to suspect this mysterious old woman. Her main interest on the island is to get her hands on Luffy. Everyone gets worried about Luffy being found by her first and rushes off to find him before she does. Nami stops them and begins to tell them about another flashback story from her perspective.**

* * *

"As you all know, me, Robin, & Franky all went to town to observe the island. Now let's see... It started when we entered this weird bar.-" Nami began.

 **(Flashback)**

Soon after Usopp gave the red flares to each group, they all departed on the island. Nami could see Sanji's group heading in the town where the food markets were held.

Luffy jumped off the ship and immediately ran in the direction of the forest. Nami could see Usopp and Chopper running after him trying to keep up with him. She smiled. Luffy was their captain. He may be goofy on the outside but on the inside, she knew that deep down, he truly cared for the crews safety. When times got tough for them, Luffy would be the one person who would save them. She hated to admit it out loud but she respected him more than anyone else. He was her savior after all.

"We should SUPER get going as well." Franky said staring at the other groups get smaller and smaller as they walked off in different directions.

"Yes, you are right. Nami?" Robin shifted her attention to Nami who was staring off in space admiring her captain in her thoughts.

Robin waved her hand in front of Nami's face to try to snap her out of it. Nami blinked and looked at Robin who was smiling. The trio made their way into town following a different path than what Sanji's group took.

"You know, it might benefit us if we go to a bar", Robin suggested.

"We should look around first. And besides, from what I can see, there are a lot of bar's here." Nami said looking around. She wasn't wrong. Everywhere they saw, there was a bar. What's up with this island? Why only bar's? And not only that, but these places had some pretty weird names such as _Luckin' Topper, Besti' o Llama, Cock Rooch, Temptation's Love_.

"Sooooo, which one are we goin' in Robin-bro?" Franky asked.

"Please do not add -bro at the end of my name, Franky." Robin replied.

"How about Robin-sis then?" He asked.

"No. Just Robin is fine." She said ending the conversation on the topic. She turned to Nami and apologized for interrupting her. Nami waved it off and continued searching around.

"Hmmmm... I'm at a loss. Robin, You pick one." Nami said.

"In that case, how about this one." Robin pointed to the bar they were standing in front of.

Nami read the sign. _Takeeles Bar_. The name was a bit misleading compared to all the other weird names they came across. There was another sign just to the right of the entrance. It read _"Bar owners-Maylene & Luther Takeeles. Oldest couple of the island"_. The three entered the bar and sat separately, hoping to get more info that way. Nami sat at the booth in front of the bartender. Robin chose to sit with a few pirates who invited her over to sit with them. Franky went to another table where a few muscled pirates were sitting.

Nami was enjoying her drink when she was interrupted by the bartender. "So, I take it this is your first time on the island young miss?

She picked her head up to look at the bartender. He was an averaged size man who looked like he was in his 70s. He was wearing a plain T-shirt and some shorts. He was wearing a red bandana on his head. Actually, wait. Was that... a handkerchief? With purple flowers on it? Why would an old man have a handkerchief meant for a lady?

"Yes, it is. I'm actually a pirate just passing by this island with the rest of my crew. Why do you ask, old man?" Nami asked, her gaze still focused on the handkerchief.

"I see pirates new and old come by this island for a drink. It got a little crazy over the years, so they opened more liquor bars around town. It did us a lot of good but the names on the new bars are just ridiculous." He answered. He paused to notice that she was staring at the handkerchief wrapped around his head. He took it off his head and held it out in front of her. "I see your a bit interested in this?"

"Oh, no...You see...it's just...well, why do you have it? It's looks like something that was meant for a woman. To be honest, seeing it worn by a guy is a little unusual." Nami said.

"Hehehe, it's quite alright. If you want to know so bad, I'll gladly tell you." The old man smiled. "And at the same time, I'll tell you about those tall trees over there." He pointed at the trees through a window.

"Thanks old man." Nami took a moment to turn around and signal Franky & Robin over to her. They both saw her signal, left their tables, & rushed over to join Nami.

"Oh, are these two your crew members, young miss?" the bartender asked recognizing a few faces from the new wanted posters after the incident on Dressrosa.

"This is Nico Robin, an archaeologist, and this is Franky, our half-cyborg half-human shipwright." she exclaimed.

"And you, young miss? What's your name?" he asked smiling at Nami.

"Me? Oh yeah, that's right! I haven't introduced myself. I'm Nami, the navigator of my crew." she answered.

"Well, it's nice to meet you Nami, Franky, & Nico Robin. I'm called Luther Takeeles." Luther said while preparing a few glasses of beer for Robin & Franky. He placed the glasses in front of the two and nodded his head when they thanked him.

"Anyways, you were gonna tell us about the handkerchief and those tall trees?" Nami asked reminding the old man about her curiosity.

"Aw yes. I didn't forget. Let's see...It was about 30 years when I lost my wife..." Luther began

 **(A Flashback from 30 years ago...)**

"Maylene! Please stay still and maintain your posture properly." a 30 year younger Luther begged while holding a paintbrush in one hand and a paint palate in the other.

"Oh come on! How can possibly stay still on a day like this?" Maylene asked. She was shifting every which way with her head facing another direction. Maylene was a beautiful woman with long blonde curly hair. She always wore a soft smile on her face.

Her husband was a painter and when they first met, it was because of a certain painting that lured her to it. She saw him painting a field full of purple flowers. She loved flowers more than anything but purple flowers were her most favorite. She remembered that painting very well. And now, Maylene would finally get the chance to be a part of the flowers in his paintings. That is, if she could just sit still. She was so excited that sitting in a chair was just too boring, especially for a painting.

"This is so boring! Can't you paint any faster?" she asked pouting with cheeks puffed up.

"I would if you kept still", Luther confirmed disregarding her pouts.

"How long will it take if I do?" she asked holding the edge of the chair and cocking her head to the side.

"About 20 to 30 minutes." he said fixing the colors on his paint palate.

Maylene jumped out of her chair and ran up to Luther to see what he painted so far. He painted every part except for her. She was disappointed.

"Why didn't you paint me?" she asked punching her husband in the arm lightly.

Luther blushed, "Oh...well...I...I just wanted you to be perfect in the painting." He looked away to avoid her gaze.

She smiled. "Is that so?..."

"Yeah", Luther said still avoiding her gaze.

She laughed at her husbands cute embarrassment, "Oh well, you can paint me later. Come on let's go!"

She pulled her husband away from his paint supplies and together, they ran for the flower beds on a hill. They were smiling and laughing. They really enjoyed each others company. Together they felt like they were one.

Before they knew it, nightfall had come. They were laying on the flowers staring at the stars. Their hands locked together. They never wanted the day to end.

Maylene sat up and peeked over at Luther. He was sleeping soundly. "Today was a lot of fun, huh?" she spoke softly so that she wouldn't wake him.

In the distance she could see their home among all the other flowers that surrounded it. It was a small cottage that was made for the couple. She looked further beyond it and saw the town. She could see lights from a few houses in the town. She's been in that town many times.

Aside from the flower beds she sees everyday and the town, there was one place on the island where she hasn't been. A forest full of trees taller the skies. She thought it stupid at first but when she saw it, she couldn't believe her eyes. They were so tall and so mysterious. She was told never to go near them. But it was always in her interest to venture into the forest and find something precious.

Suddenly Maylene saw something in the distance approaching the forest. She squinted her eyes to try to see better. There was a child in front of the forest. No wait, that's a short woman about the same age as her. What's she doing over there? Out of instinct, she stood up and ran to catch up with the woman. Maybe if she was with someone else, she could come out of the forest safe. She knew that leaving Luther alone was risky, so she made sure to explore the forest quick and return to him before he wakes up.

She didn't realize that she had dropped her handkerchief on the ground. By the time she caught up to where the woman stood, she hid behind a nearby post. It would be really weird if she asked the short woman to go in the forest with her for exploring purposes, so she decided to just follow her.

"I know your there. Stop hiding." the short woman said.

"Uh, sorry. I was just-" Maylene said coming out from her hiding place.

"Curious about what's in this forest?" the short woman interrupted.

"Why yes. There are no monsters or strange creatures in it, right?" she asked having second thoughts.

"No. I've been in here before. If you want to go in there, then go. I never got lost so there shouldn't be reason why you should." the woman said.

Maylene felt relieved at her words. Getting lost was the least of worries. She began walking into the forest.

She looked back at the woman, "Thank you for the heads up. If I may, what is your name?"

"Miss Bakkin" she said turning to leave.

"I'll remember your name, thanks." And with that, she turned toward the forest and ran in there. She didn't notice Miss Bakkin looking back smirking and laughing under her breath. Maylene hadn't known until it was too late. She ran pretty deep in the forest and to make things worse, she couldn't find her way back. She was sad. She walked in many directions trying to find some kind of path that led to the outside world. She got worried about Luther and how he would react badly if he noticed her gone.

It had been days since Luther had last seen his wife. Days then turned to months and from months to years. Every passing moment was painful. He quit painting and opened the towns first liquor bar under his and Maylene's name. He knew Maylene wanted to go into that forest for a long time despite what people would always tell her. He could remember that day when he saw her handkerchief on the floor leading to the forest. He had told her many times to never go into it, much less go near it at all. He cried that day. He cried hard. It was unbearable. Too unbelievable. He remembered attempting to go into the forest to try to find his dearest wife only to be stopped by the other villagers. There were times when they tied him down to keep from making the same decision his wife made. They told him that there was no food in there and that she could be dead. For the longest time, he suffered the loss of the beloved wife gone forever.

 **(Flashback from 30 years ago ended)**

Both Nami and Robin were drawn in to Luther's story. Franky was crying and would occasionally sneeze in a tissue from a tissue box that Luther gave him in the middle of his story.

"Anyways, not only are there no food in that forest, but it's like an illusion forest connected to reality. Basically, you see or hear things you don't normally hear. Sometimes you hear the voices of past loved ones that are either dead or are alive but far way. It's odd, but I had always wondered if my wife saw me in there. In any case, you shouldn't go near that forest. The forest doesn't have a name but if it did, it'd probably be called the Lost Forest." Luther concluded.

"I'M SO...SORRY...ABOUT YOUR... WIFE! IT MUST...HAVE BEEN...HARD BRO!" Franky said.

"I waited 30 years for her to return but I don't think she's coming back. Thank you for caring though. It means a lot." Luther said.

"We stayed here awhile. Sorry Luther, but we should be heading back to our ship. The rest of our crew are probably all waiting for us." Nami said getting up.

"Thank you for the story and the warning, Luther." Robin said waving her hand at him.

The three pirates waved their goodbyes to Luther before exiting the bar.

~A short while later~

"Nami, look up there." Robin was pointing at the red flare shooting up in the sky.

"Let's hurry back to the ship." Nami said. The three of them nodded before rushing back in the direction of the Sunny.

 **(End Flashback)**

They were suspicious before, but now they were really suspicious. Is it a coincidence that Miss Bakkin was on the island 30 years back? That itself, they weren't really sure of. Even though, Nami finished telling her report, it didn't change anything.

"Any comments?" Nami asked folding her arms and holding them close to her chest.

"I've got a comment!" Usopp said raising hand up in the air. All eyes were now on him but he didn't care for the attention. "Let's go find Luffy. Finding him before that Bakkin woman should be our top priority right now. She doesn't seem strong herself, but she did mention that she was here with her son and who knows, he might be really strong. SO LET'S GO ALREADY!"

Nami sighed. Guess her story did take up some time. She admits it's her fault, but what she heard from Luther was said and done, so there's no point in complaining now. "Alright, everyone split in groups of two, head out and start searching for Luffy. We know he's in that forest and this time, we'll be using rope like a breadcrumb to get back out. Robin, you'll use your devil fruit to search for Luffy. Make your best effort to find him. Once the day hits nightfall, head back to the Sunny. Got It?" Nami said commanding the crew in Luffy's absence.

Everyone nodded, grabbed bundles of rope from Franky's workshop and headed out in the direction of the forest. Losing Luffy was easy. And because he causes a lot of trouble everywhere, finding him was easier. Or at least, that's what they thought.

* * *

 **I'M FINALLY DONE WITH THIS CHAPTER! I hope you liked it, cause I did. Be sure to review about any errors that need to be changed, any opinions, or ideas for future chapters! I love reading your guys reviews! They help keep me motivated to write more!**

 **And now the moment you have all been waiting for,** **In the next chapter, Weeble and Luffy FINALLY meet!** **I'm excited to write about it!**


	6. The First Meeting

**I'm sorry I didn't upload this sooner! I know you were all expecting Weeble & Luffy to finally meet. I admit, I was on break. But now I'm back on track.**

* * *

"Yosh! Everyone head out to the forest. The sooner we find our idiot captain, the sooner we can back to the ship and be on our way. We can't waste any time. Our main objective is to find Luffy before Miss Bakkin! Be careful in that forest and come back to the Sunny when the day hits nightfall! Got it?!" Nami ordered.

 **(Meanwhile, back in the forest...)**

"Geeeezz! Enough already! These trees go on and on and on. I feel like I've been walking in a same direction forever. This sucks. I never really got lost in the forest back in Fuusha Village." Luffy sighed while hanging his head down.

Ever since he heard Ace's voice, he's been wandering around the forest trying to look for a way back to his friends. Every now and then, he would climb up a tree and look to see if he was getting close, but instead of getting closer, he ended up even further away. It almost seems as if the forest is messing with his mind by making him think that he's close to the edge of the forest but in reality, he's not. After 30 minutes, he started to get annoyed. After 45, he got mad. And after an hour, he got so frustrated, he punched a tree, which fell down knocking several others down as well. It's been 2 hours already and Luffy only had one thing on his mind right now.

"*stomach growls* Uggghh, I wish Sanji were here right now. *rubs stomach while sticking tongue out* I'm starving. I want fooodd. Normally, when I'm in a forest and I get hungry, I usually find something to eat. I tried but...*stops, looks around*... there's nothing there. Not to mention, I've been walking for a long time and still nothing. I really hate this forest." Luffy said in disbelief as he continued walking down a straight path.

He didn't care anymore whether he met up with his friends or not. They were probably out of the forest by now. After punching a tree, Luffy decided to follow the same direction until he reaches the edge of the forest on the other side. He knew that this forest couldn't possibly last forever and that it had to have an exit somewhere. Since there's no food here, he'll have to find some after he leaves the forest. Once he's leaves the forest and got something to eat, he would go back to the ship where his friends were waiting for him.

After about 15 minutes, Luffy's legs were starting to give in, but Luffy kept going. Another 10 minutes and Luffy could finally see a light coming from the trees further ahead. He sighed in relief and kept going and going and going until...

Luffy could feel the sun shining brightly in his face. He used his hand to protect his eyes from the bright sun. He looked down and saw that he was standing in sand. He looked up and noticed that he was on the beach. So the edge of the forest led him to the edge of the island. *stomach growls* He clutched his stomach tightly, almost telling it to shut up. He's fought many battles before, but if there was one battle he couldn't win, it was his stomach. There were times when he wished he didn't eat so much and just eat normal portions like Nami or Robin. How did he even hungry all the time anyways? Sure, he had a decent build but he was still super skinny. A skinny body with an endless appetite. He wondered if he got it from his grandpa.

Luffy shook his head to snap him out of his odd thoughts and looked ahead. There wasn't anything or anyone in sight except for the beach and the forest. He turned to the left and started walking in that direction. He could feel his legs hurting from walking a great distance. This is the first time Luffy's ever had to walk that far and go without food.

Then, in the distance, near the water of the sea, he could see someone swinging something back and forth. He noticed a tent and a fire with a bunch of thick logs around it. There was a pot on top of a tree stump near the fire. His nose then picked up a scent from the pot. He drooled slightly as he began making his way over to the pot. It smelled nice...nice and yummy...yummy and...THUD!

"Oww, that hurt!" Luffy said cringing his face a little. He fell on his knees but remained sitting upright.

"*looks down at legs* Geez, of all the times to give up now. Just when I was about to get some food. *pauses, then sighs* Guess my legs did do a little too much walking today." Luffy said not noticing that the guy who was swinging his weapon around, had heard him fall and was rushing over to him.

"Oi, you! Who are you?" the weapon swinging guy questioned hovering over Luffy. He sounded as if he had a runny nose.

Luffy looked up at him. He was a big tall guy with a long, curvy white beard and two braided-like hair in front. He had a couple scars around his neck, on his face, and on his left arm. But what caught Luffy's attention the most, was the weapon the guy had. He had seen it before somewhere before but couldn't really remember where. It felt so similar to someone else's weapon.

The big tall guy pointed the blade of his weapon at Luffy. "I said 'Who are you?' Don't make me repeat myself."

Luffy opened his mouth but just as he was about to say his name, his stomach growled loudly enough for the big tall guy to hear.

"What was that?" he asked.

"My stomach. *holds stomach* Ugghhh...so hungry..." Luffy replied looking down at his stomach. Without looking up at the guy, Luffy asked, "Hey, do you have any food?"

"Uh! Yeah. Why?" he asked Luffy.

"Can I get something to eat?" Luffy asked still looking down.

"Well sure but, it's my momma's cooking and I don't know if she'll let me give it to strangers." he said retracting his weapon away from Luffy.

Luffy looked up and smiled his idiot smile at the guy, "Really? I can have some? Your mom's cooking smelled so good, I really wanted to try it. I'm sure your mom wouldn't mind sharing."

"Yeah, your right! Momma will definitely forgive me if I share her food with you." He said.

"Thanks. Oh but, can I ask you a favor?" Luffy asked.

"Oh course! What is it?" he said scratching his stomach.

"My legs aren't listening to me right now, so can you help me over to where the food is?" Luffy requested.

The big tall guy smiled and nodded. He crouched down, swung Luffy's arm around his neck, and helped him over to one of the logs around the campfire. He then grabbed a bowl and scooped up some food in the pot and gave it to Luffy. The food smelled sooo gooood. Luffy thanked the guy and started chomping down on it right away.

Luffy paused his eating and asked, "Your mom's food tastes amazing. Who is she anyways?"

"My mom's name is Bakkin but she's known as Miss Bakkin. Oh! And I forgot, my name's Weeble. Edward Weeble. I'm the son of Whitebeard, Edward Newgate" Weeble replied.

Suddenly, Luffy stopped eating. He came to the realization that the weapon that Weeble had was the same as that Whitebeard guy from the war two years ago. Luffy looked up at Weeble and said, "That reminds me. That weapon of yours looks a lot like the weapon that Whitebeard guy had."

"I know. Momma told me it was called a bisento. She said this was custom-made and that my dad's bisento was at his grave." Weeble said.

Luffy raised an eyebrow and asked, "His grave?"

"Yeah my dad died in this war 2 years ago. It's all that Blackbeard's fault! He killed my dad and took his devil fruit away!" he said angered at the mention of Blackbeard's name.

"Wait, what? Blackbeard took his devil fruit? How? I thought he already ate a devil fruit." Luffy stood up. He set the finished bowl near the pot.

"I don't how he did it, but he did. That bastard didn't even die when he ate my dad's fruit!" Weeble said still angered.

"When did Blackbeard even take his fruit?" Luffy asked curious about what happened after Ace had died.

"At that war 2 years ago. He went there with his allies and his so-called family crew. The marines were executing this Ace dude and my dad was trying to save him." Weeble said starting to calm down.

"Ace? That's my big brother! I also went there to save him!" Luffy announced.

Weeble was confused, "What?! I didn't know that."

"Ace was the son of the Pirate King, but he hated him. Blackbeard was the one who threw Ace to his death. I will never forgive that bastard for what he did. At that war, when I decided I was going to save Ace, he ended up saving me instead. When Akainu went after me, Ace stepped in the way, taking the hit instead. He...saved me...and died right in front of me." Luffy felt the need to cry but choked up his tears so that he wouldn't.

Weeble was stunned and a bit heartbroken. This guy he just met had his big brother taken away from him. Just like him, but with his dad. And it was the same guy who caused it too.

Weeble lowered his head so that his face wouldn't show and asked Luffy, "Umm, I think I asked this before but...Who are you?"

Luffy looked at Weeble and said, "I'm the captain of the Strawhat Pirates and my name is Monkey D. Luffy."


	7. Search But Never Find

**Thank you all soooo much for reading my story! And thanks for the reviews, I love reading them! Remember, more reviews leads to more inspiration leads to chapters and stories to be updated sooner. Even though this is my first story, I'm incredibly happy to see it doing so well.**

 **IMPORTANT!**

 **IMPORTANT!**

 **READ THIS, IT'S IMPORTANT! :**

 **I did some research on a few things about Weeble & found out his name is actually spelled "Weevil", but since I didn't know that when I started this story, his name will remain as "Weeble" for the rest of the story. I saw his name as Weeble in the manga, so I'm sticking with that.**

* * *

"Who are you?" Weeble asked.

"I'm the captain of the Strawhat Pirates and my name is Monkey D. Luffy." Luffy announced.

There was an immediate silence between the two pirates. A swish of the wind passed by making the situation a bit awkward for the two.

Weeble picked up his face toward Luffy and cocked his head to the side. "Who?"

"I said 'my name is Monkey D. Luffy'." Luffy repeated already feeling the drift of the awkwardness.

"Yeah, I heard what you said but,... I never heard of you before." Actually, he did. But he couldn't remember where exactly he heard that name from. Not only was he a bit of a nutshell, but he was pretty forgetful sometimes.

Luffy didn't know what to say. He just simply didn't have the words. He was shocked to say the least. Ever since he made a sudden appearance on Sabaody Archipelago and came to the New World, he was sure that someone would at least recognize that name by now. Especially after the Dressrosa incident and maybe from the war as well. He turned away from Weeble to think about the situation. He knew that most people would normally call him by his real name, and that there are those who would call him by his nick name.

Then a thought occurred to Luffy. THAT'S IT! Those who don't call him 'Luffy', would normally call him 'Mugi-wara' instead. He paused for a moment to confirm his thought before turning back to Weeble who seemed to be in a daze looking at the pot of stew near the fire.

"Do you know a guy called 'Mugi-wara'?" Luffy asked snapping Weeble out of his daze.

"Mugi-wara? OH YEAH! I KNOW HIM! Momma said he was on this island. We're actually looking for him cause we need him for something." Weeble said.

 _Need me? What would Weeble and his mom need me for?_ Luffy thought to himself not wanting to speak out loud right away. He waited and then asked, "Need him? Need him for what?"

"Momma told me not to tell anyone besides Mugi-wara himself." Weeble said looking apologetic as he said it.

Luffy smiled his signature smile, "In that case, it's okay to say why right? Cause I'm him."

Weeble's eyes widened for a bit out of shock. _Could it really be? This guy is Mugi-wara? Sure, he's wearing a strawhat_ _and all, but..._

Weeble looked down for a moment to get serious before picking up his head again. He looked at Luffy, who's smile was starting to fade away due to Weeble's gaze being all serious, and said, "You said that your Mugi-wara, right?"

"Yeah why?" Luffy replied, he could sense that Weeble was gonna do something.

"Me and my momma were looking for you."

"Yeah, I know. You told me that already." Luffy crossed his arms.

"You were in that war two years ago, right?"

"Well duh. I was trying to save my brother from being executed, but I guess I failed." Luffy said immediately feeling discouraged at the mention of his brother, Ace.

"You saw my dad die, right?" Weeble said, clenching his fist around his weapon.

"Actually, no I didn't. Not too long after Ace died, I was told that I fell unconscious." Luffy unfolded his arms and positioned his feet only slightly. He could definitely tell that this guy is about to crack at any minute, so he needed to be ready when that happens.

Weeble raised his weapon and in an instant, slashed it down at Luffy. Luffy dodged by jumping in the air and landing a short distance away from the campfire. Weeble then said, "Don't give me that crap. Don't you dare...DON'T YOU DARE GIVE ME THAT CRAP!"

He slashed the weapon at Luffy again and again and likewise, Luffy kept dodging and dodging. The two pirates were already getting further away from the campfire.

"Oi! I told you already, didn't I?! I fell unconscious right after Ace died! I don't know what happened after that! All I know is that Blackbeard killed that old guy and that the war ended when some other Yonko appeared!" Luffy exclaimed. It was no use though. Weeble wasn't listening. He just kept swinging his weapon at him.

"Oi! Stop it already! I had nothing to do with your dad's death! Geez, I said STOP! Why are you attacking me anyways?" Luffy asked him until Weeble finally stopped. Luffy took that as an opportunity to look around. They got pretty far away from that camp they were at just a minute ago.

"My momma said to beat you up." Weeble said not looking at Luffy's face.

"Huh?! Why? You guys targeting me or something?" Luffy asked.

"You know where he is. Don't you?" Weeble asked ceasing his fight with Luffy.

"Where who is? Blackbeard?" Luffy was utterly confused. Who can blame him? This guy wasn't explaining anything properly.

"The Former First Division Commander of my dad's crew, Phoenix Marco." Weeble said.

"Marco?" Luffy just didn't know what was going on anymore. First this Weeble guy gives him food, then he's attacking him all because he wants to know where Marco is? It just didn't add up. Anyways, wasn't that Marco guy that blonde pineapple blue bird person from the war? What does Weeble want with him?

"Momma said he saved you from being killed in the war. So, ... where is he? If you don't tell me, I'll beat you up until you tell me." Weeble asked again.

"He saved me? I don't remember that happening. And, I don't know where he is." Luffy said bluntly.

Weeble was out of patience with Luffy. For two years, he and his mom had been hunting members of his dad's crew. He just couldn't accept the fact that his dad would choose them as his family than his own son. It was unforgivable! He looked Luffy in the eye and said, "Guess I have no choice but to go all out. I'll hurt you until you tell me where all the bastards from my dad's stupid family are, so prepare yourself."

Luffy braced himself. He had a feeling this guy wouldn't give up. Still, he wasn't about to lose to someone like him. Weeble began walking toward Luffy. Then sped up to a run. He lunged at Luffy holding his weapon and struck, beginning the fight.

* * *

 **(With Nami, Robin, & Zoro)**

"Yosh! The next thing we outa do is..." Nami began but was cut off because of a certain someone chopping away at the tall trees in the forest. It was irritating enough that he fights with Sanji every ten seconds. Suddenly, a long blue stick (Nami's clima tact) connected with Zoro's head.

"Owww! OI, NAMI! THAT FREAKING HURT!" Zoro barked.

"I DON'T GIVE A DAMN IF THAT HURT OR NOT! LISTEN WHEN SOMEONE'S TALKING, BAKA!" Nami barked back.

"HUH! YOUR EVEN WORSE THAN THAT CURLY EYEBROWS!"

"WHY YOU!"

While the two kept bickering at each other, Robin was using her devil fruit to search around the area. It's been at least two hours since the crew had set off to search for Luffy. Before the crew left the Sunny, Nami suggested that it would be easier if they searched with the groups they were originally in when they first ventured out on the island. But because of two complete idiots (Zoro & Sanji) who find every chance to pick a fight, the groups had to change. Seriously, those two just won't quit fighting with each other. No matter what was going on or what the situation was, they won't shut up and get along.

"Nami, Zoro. It would help if you two stop fighting and focus on looking for our missing captain." Robin said.

"Fine." Zoro said before resuming to chopping trees he assumed were in his way.

"Oi! Your supposed to be looking for Luffy, not cutting trees!" Nami said.

"So?" Zoro asked.

"So, what are you gonna do if a tree hits Luffy?!"

"He'll be fine. He's made out of rubber isn't he? Besides, if he's hurt, Chopper can just patch him up."

"That's not the point here!"

"Nami..." Robin called out to Nami until she turned away from Zoro.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Look for Luffy. But, you know, just how long are we gonna search for him?" Nami asked.

"Hmmm... I'm not sure. It's already been a few hours since Luffy disappeared. *looks at the sky* One thing's for sure, we need to find him before the day ends by any means necessary." Robin said.

"Guess all we can do now is to try to find him." Nami said and then thought to herself, _Luffy, can't you see that we're all worried about you here? Where are you?_

* * *

 **(With Sanji, Franky, Brook)**

"Glad I don't have to deal with that damn moss head anymore." Sanji said sounding relieved.

"I wonder... Whenever you two fight, it's always over something pointless. Have you two always been that way?" Brook asked.

"Hmmm...I guess so. We never really did get along even when we first met." Sanji said thinking about the time when he met Luffy, Nami, Usopp & Zoro at the Baratie in the East Blue.

"Enough already. Can't you two focus. We're supposed to be looking for our captain here." Franky said cutting into Sanji's reminiscing about the good old days. He didn't realize that somewhere in another part of the forest, Robin was saying the exact same thing.

"I apologize, Franky-san. I shall find Luffy using the soft tunes on my violin." Brook said before taking out his violin and started playing some music.

"Well at least we'll have some entertainment while looking for the idiot captain." Sanji said.

"You should look for him in the air with that moon-walking technique you have." Franky suggested.

"Eh sure why not. Cure my lack of entertainment from the only musician we have while your at it too." Sanji said sarcastically. It may not look like it, but he actually enjoyed listening to Brook's music.

"Quit the sarcasm and get to it already will you." Franky was getting annoyed at Sanji's attitude. They had been searching for Luffy for nearly four hours and they still have yet to find him.

 _Luffy, I wonder where you wandered off to. I for one, will definitely find you. Please be safe in the meantime._ Brook thought to himself.

* * *

 **(With Chopper & Usopp)**

"Robin sure is keeping an eye out." Usopp said, spotting one of Robin's eyes looking around, "Literally."

"She mentioned before that she was gonna monitor everyone's location while looking for Luffy at the same time." Chopper added.

"Sounds to me like she's doing all the work. We gotta make sure we're helping out as well." Usopp said.

"Right. But Usopp..." Chopper hung his head down to look at the ground.

"Yeah? What is it?" Usopp asked.

"It's been five hours since Luffy disappeared. Do you think we'll ever find him?" Usopp could tell that Chopper was getting really worried about Luffy.

"Don't worry! We'll find him! We'll definitely find him. It's just a matter of time before Luffy shows up and says 'So that's where you guys were. I was looking all over for you'. And by that time, feel free to knock him in the head." Usopp said trying to cheer up his reindeer friend.

"Hehe. Yeah! I'll definitely do that when we find him." Chopper said lifting up his head with a grin.

"That's the spirit Chopper! Now let's go get our idiot captain!" Usopp said pumping a fist in the air.

"Right!" Chopper said also pumping his arms up.

* * *

 **(All the Strawhats** **)**

The day seemed go on forever with the Strawhat crew still looking for their captain with no success at all. They had all been searching for Luffy in the forest all day wishing that with some of his devils luck, that he would show up in front of one the groups already. But so far, that's not happening. They didn't think it would take them this long to find him even if they didn't have any leads or hints as to where he might be. For all they know, he might be dead just like that woman Maylene. They quickly dismissed the idea knowing that Luffy dying was the least of their worries. Finding him was their top priority.

It's been six hours now and still no luck. Sunset was rolling in and the trees were starting to distort the crew's communication. Robin was getting a bit weak from using her devil fruit everywhere all day and with the trees misbehavior, it became really hard for her to track of everyone's location. She could feel the trees misleading them elsewhere and if at all possible, maybe away from Luffy. They all began to wonder if they'll ever find their captain again.

* * *

 **(Meanwhile, Back at the Beach...)**

Even if the fight only lasted a couple hours, it feels as if it had gone on forever. Luffy got really annoyed with how long the fight was taking. He was sure that his crew were probably looking for him. They must be really worried with him being gone for so long.

But still, with a fight this rigorous and loud, how come they haven't found him yet? Luffy thought about it for a while before glancing over at the trees and coming to a sudden realization. It's because of those damn trees! Not only are they too damn tall, but it's also soundproof. Luffy could remember the trees having something to do with him not being able hear clearly and his voice not really reaching very far. He wondered if his crew knew that there was a fight going on at all. Suddenly, a sharp metal connected with Luffy's side and sent him flying into a giant rock nearby. Luffy slid down the rock and fell on his bottom.

"Owww... that really hurt..." Luffy murmured silently as he looked down at the fresh wound, "At this rate, I won't last very long."

Weeble's weapon cut deep into his left side. Luffy covered up the wound with his hand to try to prevent the blood from gushing out any further, but it was no use. It's been only 4 minutes since Luffy had used fourth gear. Even if he waited another 6 minutes, it probably wouldn't help much. Using fourth gear at all was already too much of a risk.

"Oi! Mugi-wara! Who said you could sit down?!" Weeble yelled at Luffy readying his weapon for another attack.

"Heh, you think I'm doing this on purpose?" Luffy remarked trying to sound a bit humorous. After using fourth gear, not only does he need at least 10 minutes to regain his haki, but his rubber body has trouble functioning normally and it's because of that, that he's not able to move around too much.

"I'll ask you again, Where is Marco the Phoenix?" Weeble questioned.

"And, I'll say it again. I don't know where he is. The last time I saw him and any other former Whitebeard pirate was at that war." Luffy answered. He was getting tired of being interrogated over the same thing. He looked past Weeble over at the old woman sitting on a stump nearby. He thought to himself, _So... that's Weeble's mom huh? Wonder when she got here? Doesn't matter._ *glances over at Weeble* _I need to finish this fight and get back to my crew._

"Weeble dear!" The old woman Luffy assumed was called Miss Bakkin called to Weeble who turned to face her.

"Yeah ma? What is it?" Weeble asked speaking in a calm voice.

"I think this fight has gone on for long enough. Finish it quickly. If he doesn't know where Marco is, then there's nothing we can do. However,... we could use him as bait to lure Marco out. That way would be much easier on our part." Miss Bakkin suggested.

Weeble turned back to Luffy who is still gazing at him. "This is the last time I'm asking Mugi-wara. Where is Marco?"

"Then this is the last time I'm saying this as well. I don't know and even if I did, I wouldn't tell you." Luffy repeated.

Weeble was out of patience with Luffy. He was tired of being mocked with the same answer he gets every time he asks a question. He walked over to where Luffy was, raised his weapon only to flip it around and hit Luffy in the back of his head, almost smashing into his rubber skull. After he did so, Luffy fell to his side hitting the floor in the process. Once Luffy was knocked out unconscious, Weeble grabbed him and flung him over his shoulder. Miss Bakkin stood up and led Weeble back to the camp to pack up before leaving the island.

* * *

 **(With Chopper & Usopp)**

"I can't believe we actually made it out of that forest. It seemed like we were in there forever." Usopp said.

Chopper hung his head down and stared at the ground. He was dragging a stick he found earlier along the sandy beaches. He hadn't spoken a word to Usopp since they made it out of the forest.

Usopp glanced at Chopper, "Oi, Chopper. What's wrong? You look down." Usopp asked.

For a moment, Chopper didn't say anything, then he stopped walking. Usopp stopped as well still looking at the sad reindeer. "Nah Usopp. It's been seven hours since we last saw Luffy. Do you think we'll ever find him?"

Usopp looked away from Chopper and stared at the vast ocean in front of him. He could tell that Chopper was worried. More worried than usual. But who can blame him? They all are. Luffy had been missing for a long time with no trace as to where he might be and they still can't him. The sunset gave the day an orange-like color. And, nighttime was just around the corner. The rest of the crew contacted Usopp using a short-ranged Den-Den Mushi and told him that they were headed back to the ship and coming around the island to the beach that Usopp was on. In the meantime, Usopp and Chopper would continue to look for Luffy.

Without turning back to Chopper, Usopp said, "Honestly speaking, I don't really know anymore. It doesn't usually take us this long to find the guy."

Chopper started to cry softly, "Do you mean that we'll never find him?"

Usopp looked back at Chopper who had tears rolling down his face without any sign of ever stopping. Usopp immediately crouched down and grabbed Chopper in a tight hug who hugged him back.

Usopp released Chopper before saying, "Definitely! We will definitely find him! He may be our idiot captain, but he's still our greatest friend! I promise you Chopper, I, Usopp the Sniper of the Strawhat Pirate Crew, will search for Luffy until he is found! No matter what!"

Chopper's eyes choked on his tears a few times before wiping it away. "Me too! I'm the Strawhat Pirate's Doctor, Tony Tony Chopper!"

The two stood up and continued walking down the path along the shores of the beach. Usopp decided to hold Chopper's hoof so that the reindeer would be calm. It wasn't too until the two reached the camp that Miss Bakkin talked about earlier in the forest. The camp looked deserted though.

"They must've cleaned up and left." Usopp said letting go of Chopper and walked around the camp to find any traces or clues that might lead them to Luffy.

Chopper looked around the camp and then noticed a bunch of footprints in the sand. "Oi! Usopp! Look at this!"

Usopp went over to where Chopper was and took a look at what he saw. There were footprints leading away from the camp.

"Come on. We need to find out where these footprints lead." Usopp said already walking along the footprints path.

Chopper rushed over to Usopp's side not wanting to be left behind, "Right!"

They continued following the footprints path until Usopp made an immediate halt. Chopper, who was walking directly behind him, bumped into Usopp's leg. He peeked around from behind his leg to see what made Usopp stop so suddenly. And then, he saw it.

There was blood everywhere where the eye could see. Chopper was a bit horrified as he walked further into the small sandy land of blood. He looked around to try to find Luffy to see if he was hurt, but saw something else instead. He rushed over to see what that something was, kneeled down to pick it up and started bawling his eyes out. Usopp ran over to see what Chopper found that made cry so hard. But when he saw what it was, he understood the situation completely. The thing that Chopper was clutching to his chest so tightly was without a doubt... Luffy's hat.

Chopper looked up at Usopp with his eyes completely covered in tears, "Usopp...what happened...to Luffy?...Is he gonna...be okay?"

Usopp had no words for the poor little guy. He was pretty shocked himself. _He lost? When was there ever a fight? How? Luffy's...Luffy's...No, It can't...Luffy can't be...Luffy's...gone?_ Usopp thought to himself before saying, "I don't know, but whoever took him away from us will pay very dearly."

* * *

 **I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Personally, I thought it was a little bit too long.**

 **Anyways, please review, favorite, or/and follow my story and like always, stay in touch for the next chapter.**


	8. Kidnapped & New Worries

**Finally! I finally got to this point of the story! So, Luffy's been kidnapped. The fight between them took all day & the Strawhats were never able to find him.**

 **I can already guess what's going through your guy's minds right now. I bet you were all thinking this after reading the last chapter, "OH MY GOD! WHAT JUST HAPPENED? Will Luffy's capture be known around the world or something? When is Sabo showing up? Or when is Shanks showing up? Will they show up on Weeble's ship & take him back? Also, WHEN THE HECK DOES SHANKS MEET SABO? IT'S KILLING ME! I MUST KNOW! If I were a reader of this story, I'd ask these sort of questions. But, if you want an answer, then here it is... ****wait & see what happens!**

* * *

 **(Somewhere in the New World...)**

It was just another day on the Red Force ship. Some pirates were drinking & cheering for Luffy's greatest accomplishments. Others were either fishing, sleeping, having a contest of some kind, or just standing around doing nothing but stare at the sea. It's been weeks since the world found out about the situation on Dressrosa. Everyone went especially nuts about Mugi-wara no Luffy defeating Donquixote Doflamingo.

Those who never really met Luffy before, pretty much freaked out & moved away from their islands attempting to flee to somewhere where they thought was safe. But, for those who knew Luffy personally, spent days & nights partying it up with tables of food & bottles of booze everywhere. Pirates & people from nearby villages or islands, gathered together either on their ships or on the streets laughing & smiling. They were all very happy & very proud of Luffy.

But, there was one pirate crew in particular who were the most proud. That crew belonged to a red-haired Yonko called Shanks. Almost all the newest members of the Red-Haired crew all heard about Luffy even before the kid became a pirate. Whenever Shanks got himself a new crew member, he was always asked the same question, "So, what happened to your arm?". And every time that question was asked, Shanks would go into full detail & tell them the tale of how he risked his left arm to a seaking in order to save a 7-year-old kid who stood up for him and his crew against a bunch of mountain bandits that insulted them a couple days prior. He also mentioned the promise that was made between them.

They must've heard that story about a million times already. Still, every time their captain spoke about the kid, they were impressed. A 19-year-old kid, who now happens to be a high bounty pirate, was coming there way. And with every passing day that goes by, comes another day closer to when they actually do meet up with Luffy. They all wanted to meet him soon.

Shanks was sitting in a chair in his room drinking a bottle of booze. All day, he's been trying to enjoy his evening like normal & read a book, but for some reason, he wasn't able to do that. For a while now, he's been getting this odd feeling that something was wrong. Normally, he wouldn't be too bothered by it, but this time, it was different. He just couldn't figure it out. It was bothering him so much, it was putting him on the edge of his seat. Suddenly, the door leading to Shanks room, opened. Shanks turned to see who it was and noticed that it was Benn.

Benn walked over to Shanks, "Captain, you're going to fall out of the chair if you keep leaning forward like that."

Shanks leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling. He put the book he had earlier on a small table nearby and slid down further in his seat still staring at the ceiling.

Benn turned his head to the side only slightly, "Something bothering you?"

Shanks didn't answer back immediately. He waited a short while before saying, "Something's wrong."

"Didn't I just ask you that not too long ago?" Benn asked.

"No, I meant, something's wrong, like really wrong. I just can't shake this feeling that something impossible might have happened somewhere." Shanks tried to be as specific as he can, but ended saying the same thing a second time.

Benn reached in his cape for a folded newspaper that came not too long ago and handed it to Shanks, "Could this be that something you've been so bothered about? "

Shanks lifted his head to see what Ben was talking about before taking the newspaper from him and read it over. He wasn't even halfway done reading the headline when his eyes started to widen.

Shanks immediately stood up and rushed to the door, "Benn, let's go. We're setting sail, now."

Benn followed after Shanks, "Where to?"

Shanks paused his steps to look back at Benn, "Edward Weeble's ship."

* * *

 **(Meanwhile, back on Nokowelps island...)**

It didn't take very long for the rest of the strawhats to find Usopp & Chopper. Usopp had to wave at the ship to let the crew know where he was. They could see Chopper crying as they reared the ship closer to the beach. When the ship was anchored near the beach, the strawhats aboard got off and ran over to the weeping reindeer.

Nami noticed Chopper clutching onto something close to his chest. She walked over to Chopper, crouched down to her knees, and asked, "What do have there Chopper? What's wrong?"

Chopper turned to face her, then switched back to what he was clutching. He outstretched his arms, releasing the object only a little bit, for everyone to see what it was. And, what they saw made them even more angry than they ever were before in a long time. It was a straw hat covered in blood.

Robin looked around the area before commenting, "It seems he lost more blood on the beach as well."

"Damn it! What the hell was Luffy doing?! How did this even happen?!" Sanji said furious with the situation they were put in.

"Probably that son the old lady was talking about." Zoro said not really fazed at what happened.

"SHUT UP MOSS HEAD! NO ONE ASKED YOU!" Sanji yelled.

"Zoro's right. Although I met her, I don't really know too much about who Miss Bakkin is, so I don't know exactly what happened here. There must have been a fight between her son and Luffy. My guess is that Luffy lost the fight. He must have been really strong if he was able to beat Luffy." Usopp said.

"If my memory serves me right, the name 'Miss Bakkin' sounds kind of familiar..." Brook interrupted. Suddenly, all eyes were on him.

"What do you mean? Are you saying you know her?" Sanji asked.

"Well, not personally, but I do remember someone with her name a long time ago. I believe she married Whitebeard and they had a son." Brook said. Everyone was shocked. It all made sense now. Miss Bakkin's son was also Whitebeard's son and it was him who was able to defeat Luffy so easily.

Chopper, who stopped crying at some point, broke the immediate silence that was already starting to form among the crew, "So... What's gonna happen to Luffy? Is he gonna d..."

Nami grabbed Chopper and held him tightly, "Don't say that Chopper! Listen, it's going to be alright. Luffy's alright, ok? We'll find him, I promise."

"And how're we gonna do that when we don't have a clue where he is?" Zoro asked.

Nami turned to glare at him, "Give me a break. All you did was cut trees. Were even trying to look for Luffy?" Nami questioned.

"It doesn't matter. We were all in that damn forest looking for him. If we knew he was fighting out here, we wouldn't have wasted our time in there." Zoro said.

"It's my fault. Not only did I lose him in the forest earlier today, but I was also the one who suggested we look for him in there as well." Usopp said feeling guilty.

"No! It's my fault! I couldn't sniff out Luffy's scent!" Chopper said, his eyes becoming watery.

Nami hugged Chopper closer before saying, "It's not your fault, Chopper. Besides, there was no way you could've smelled him, even with all the blood here. That forest we were in not only distorted our sense of direction, but pretty much all of our other senses as well." She took a moment to glance up at Usopp, "And, Usopp. It's not your fault either. Knowing Luffy's personality, something like this was bound to happen one day."

"Nami's right. But right now, that doesn't matter. What matters is finding Luffy, nothing else." Franky said interrupting the sudden blame game.

"And, just how do you suppose we do that exactly?" Sanji asked getting out a new cigarette to smoke.

"Well, right now we can't do anything." Nami said.

Chopper jumped out of Nami's arms, stood up & yelled at her, "What?! But, if we don't look for Luffy now, the enemy will get away with him!"

"I know Chopper, but we can't just rush out into sea without knowing where to go. Besides, it's getting dark. For all we know, we could just end up even further away from Luffy." Nami said.

"Then... what _do_ we do?" Usopp asked. Everyone became silent. They were out of ideas. If they went to look for Luffy now, they could get lost. Either that or they could go out in the morning, but that idea was even worse. If they did that, not only will Luffy be far away, but he will be hard to find. It was pointless.

"You do all realize that we do have one option left." Robin said breaking the silence. The crew turned toward her wondering what she came up with.

"What options?! Can't you see that we're out of options!" Usopp yelled. He was frustrated at feeling like he was useless even after spending the past 2 years doing nothing but train really hard. All that training he did & now looks where it got him. He felt even more useless than he did 2 years ago.

"Actually, rather than saying that we have one option, we actually have someone who would go running around everywhere looking for his little brother." Robin started to smile. They all knew who she was talking about.

"If anyone can find him, it would be that certain someone." Robin added. "Well then, shall we go give him a call?"

The strawhats all agreed to Robin's idea & made their way back to the ship. Usopp went to one of the rooms to get a Den-Den Mushi & came back to the deck where everyone else was waiting. With a sign of approval, Robin started the call. The crew waited a while until the line at the other end of the call finally answered.

"...Hello? This is Sabo of the Revolutionary..."

* * *

 **(On a ship somewhere on the sea...)**

It was dark. Too dark. Luffy couldn't see anything. His eyes were open, but it was still dark.

Where was he? He couldn't remember waking up, but when he did, he found himself tied up to the wall in chains made out of Seastone. He could feel himself rocking back & forth a bit, so he assumed he was on a ship.

But what ship? His own? He's been in almost every room on the Sunny. He's even been in Nami's room, but she knew he wasn't a pervert, so she didn't really care all that much. But, this room was dark. There weren't any windows & he couldn't even see the door that led into the room.

This was not his ship for sure. Seriously, where the hell was he? Then a thought finally occurred to him. The last thing he remembered was this old woman saying something about using Luffy as a hostage to lure out Marco.

Luffy thought back to the fight with Weeble, "Guess I lost this one this time. *thought about his crew* Sorry guys, but I don't think I'll be coming back anytime soon."

* * *

 **(On Baltigo, the base of the Revolutionary Army...)**

"Dragon-san, I'd like to request a temporary leave of absence." Sabo asked. He was standing in front of a desk. Behind the desk, Dragon was working on some paperwork.

"Oh? Is there a special reason you have?" Dragon questioned not looking up at Sabo.

"Yes, I believe someone very close to me is in trouble & is in dire need of my assistance." Dragon suddenly stopped working & looked up at Sabo, who in return, was staring right back at him with a serious expression on his face. Dragon was stunned. Sabo was almost never formal with him. Then again, he could just be sleep-walking or something.

"You know, you don't have to be so formal with me. It's not like you." Dragon said.

"Yes, I am well aware of that. But Luffy needs my help, so I must leave immediately." Sabo said revealing the reason why he asked to leave in the first place.

Dragon thought to himself, _Nope, he's most definitely awake. When it comes to my son, Err, I mean his little brother,...well..._ _he's not really able to control himself._

Suddenly, Sabo's hand slapped on top of Dragon's desk, "Please let me go! I'm worried about Luffy! If anything happens to him, I'll never be able to forgive myself."

Dragon sat back in his chair & crossed his arms. He waited a short while before giving out a heavy sigh & saying, "Fine, go. You have my permission to leave."

"Thank you Dragon-san. Sorry for leaving so suddenly." And with that, Sabo bolted out of the room.

"Good grief. The things he'll do just for Luffy... I wonder,...*hung his head back to stare at the ceiling* what can I do for my son?" Dragon asked himself. "Oh well, that's a time for another day."

* * *

 **(Meanwhile, back with the Strawhats...)**

It's been 3 days already since Luffy was kidnapped by Miss Bakkin & her son. The Strawhats were beginning to wonder if they'll ever find him. And, with so much time passed, too. Even with the help of Luffy's older brother, Sabo, they were still clueless as to where he might be. They all knew that if Luffy was taken away, that he must be on the enemy's ship heading off to who knows where. Problem is, they have no idea what that ship looked like or where it was headed.

When they contacted Sabo & told him about their current situation,...well...Let's just say, he wasn't all too happy about it. They asked him what they should do, so he told them to stay on the island and wait until he meets up with them directly.

Some of the Strawhats were actually eager to meet him, especially those who were weren't on Dressrosa the time Luffy defeated Doflamingo. When Sabo had arrived at Nokowelps island, the first thing he saw was the massive amounts of blood on the beach. He would be ok if it was someone else's blood but, it wasn't. It was Luffy's, his most previous little brother. Just looking at it made him furious.

He told the Strawhats that he would go look for Luffy on his own and beat the living crap out of whoever took him away. Sabo was about to set out when a little reindeer with a blue nose, who he learned was Chopper, had approached him. Chopper gave him Luffy's hat. The hat which had blood all over it, was cleaned sometime after they contacted Sabo.

Sabo thanked Chopper, patted his head and set out to search for Luffy.

* * *

 **(In another part of the New World...)**

"Zehehehehe... well, well, well, isn't this rather interesting?" Blackbeard was reading the daily newspaper while smirking.

"Oh, did you find a new target, Commodore Teach?" asked Laffitte, captain of the 5th ship of the Blackbeard Pirates.

"The hell I did. This newspaper says that Mug-wara's been captured & taken hostage by Edward Weeble."

"Ohhh, that is indeed interesting. What do you suggest we do? Take Mugi-wara's $500 million berri bounty?"

Blackbeard stood up out of the chair he was sitting in. He covered the newspaper up in darkness until it disappeared completely and made his way to the upper deck.

"His bounty still says 'Dead or Alive', I think now might be a good time to get some revenge on the brat." Blackbeard said.

"Revenge? You mean the time he got away from us and escaped to Sky Island?" Laffitte asked even though he already knew the answer to the question.

"Exactly. Now, tell everyone we're headed out and that our destination is Edward Weeble's ship." Blackbeard ordered.

"Roger that, sir!" Laffitte said obeying the order he was just given.


End file.
